Dispensing container for sheet material



Dec. 17, 1963 L. S. MOUNTS DISPENSING CONTAINER FOR SHEET MATERIAL Filed Jan. 27, 1981 INVENTOR.

L eW/IS 6. Moan is United States Patent 3 114 488 DISPENSENG coNrAn snn non sneer MATERIAL Lewis S. Mounts, Midland, Mich, assignor to The Dow Chemical Company, Midland, Mich, a corporation of Delaware Filed Jan. 27, 1961, Ser. No. 85,238 4 Claims. (Cl. 225-419) packaged for domestic and analogous uses are not 0rdinarily adapted for convenient use with particularly thin plastic sheet. By the term thin plastic sheet or film is meant a sheet or film having a thickness not in excess of about 0.75 mil. Such sheets are usually in the range of from about 0.2 mil to 0.65 mil. These thin sheets are easily damaged by the application of relatively small forces such as those encountered in Withdrawing sheet from a conventional dispensing box. Frequently, in withdrawing such thin plastic film from a dispensing container, the desired material is damaged by rupture, in duced by excessive finger pressure, or torn by the sharp edges of the container.

Further, conventional dispensing containers present considerable diificulty when the desired portion of the film is to be cut from the supply roll. If the cutting means attached to the box is at an undesirable angle with respect to the surface of the film being severed, manual perforation of the film may take place before the cutting means severs the dispensed portion. Other difiiculties which may arrive involve distortion, that is actual stretching of the film, and wrinkling if a strain is applied to either sever the desired portion or remove it from the container.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved dispensing container for thin plastic film.

It is still a further object of this invention to provide a dispensing container from which thin plastic film may be withdrawn using a minimum of mechanical force.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a dispensing container for thin film having a cutting means disposed in an optimum position.

These objects and other benefits may be achieved by employing a dispensing carton comprising a hollow, generally rectangular box having a bottom, two end panels, a front panel, a rear panel, a lid member, said lid member comprising a generally rectangular panel, three of the sides of said panel having a downwardly facing flange, said flange being adapted to slidably enclose said ends and said front of said box, said lid being pivotly attached to the upper edge of said rear panel of said box: a cutting edge projecting outwardly from said box generally positioned at the juncture of said bottom and said front panels, and said cutting edge lying in a plane generally coplanar with said bottom, said front panel extending upwardly to about one-half the height of the box, and smoothly folded inwardly through an angle of about at least 180.

The invention, as well as additional objects and advantages thereof will best be understood when the following Patented Dec. 17, 1963 detailed description is read in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a top plan view, partly broken away of a film dispenser in accordance with this invention, and including a roll of film in the dispenser.

FIGURE 2 is an elevational view of the front of the dispenser shown in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is an end elevational view of the dispenser shown in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 44 of FIGURE 1.

Referring to FIGURES 1, 2 and 3, there is shown a film dispenser indicated generally by the numeral 10 comprising a generally rectangular box 12 having ends 14 and back panel 16, a bottom 17, and the front panel 13. Pivotly attached to the box 12 is a cover or lid 29 having a flange 21, slidably engaging the box 12. A cutting means 22 having a serrated edge 23 is affixed to the bottom 17, the cutter 22 projecting outwardly from the box 12 in a plane generally coplanar with that of the bottom 17. Within the dispensing container it is located a roll of film 24, carried on a core 25. A portion of the film 27 exends outwardly from beneath the central portion of flange 21.

The cross sectional view, FIGURE 4 serves to illustrate the relationship between the roll 24, front panel 1%, center bar 22, and the flange 21 viewed along the line 4-4 of FIGURE 2.

The cross sectional view of FIGURE 5 serves to illustrate an alternate relationship between the roll 2 front panel 18, cutter bar 22, and the flange 21. If the roll positioning of FIGURE 4 is reversed, the section shown in FIGURE 5 results.

The operation of the invention may best be understood by describing the withdrawal and severing, in portions, of the film contained therein. The dispensing container it) is grasped in one hand and a portion of the film 27 from the roll 24 is grasped in the other hand. The portion of the film 27 is gently withdrawn away from the container 1t causing the roll 24 and its core to rotate. The container 10 and film section 27 are positioned in such a manner that the film 27 is in contact with cutting means 22. The box 10 is rotated relative to the film section 27 to provide firm engagement of the cutter bar 22 with the film 2'7 with sufiicient force applied to sever the desired portion of the film 27.

As the film portion 27 is withdrawn from the container 10 between the flange 21 and the front panel 13, the film 27 is removed directly from the roll and is not required to be in sliding contact with a significant portion of any of the container surfaces. A similar situation exists if the roll is inverted as may be appreciated from FIGURES 4 and 5 when only a short and direct route exists from the supply roll 24 to the exterior of the container in.

The maximum cutting efficiency is achieved by mounting cutter blade 22 in a plane generally parallel to the bottom of the container 17. Thus, in the case of particularly thin and weak film, the severing means 22 is applied in the most efficient manner.

The dispenser box may be fabricated either of wood, fiber board, or plastic, such as polystyrene or other materials Which have suitable characteristics. Similarly, the shape of the dispenser box in the manner of hinging the cover onto the box or of providing the generally smooth curved edge of the front panel may be changed as long as the described relationship between the cover, cutting blade, and roll and front panel is maintained.

What is claimed is:

1. A dispensing carton consisting essentially of a hollow, generally rectangular box having a bottom, two end panels, a front panel, a rear panel, a lid member,

said lid member comprising a generally rectangular panel, three of the sides of said panel having a downwardly facing flange, said flange being adapted to slidably enclose said ends and a portion of said front of said box, the flange enclosing a portion of the front panel of the box for a vertical distance substantially less than one-half the height of said front panel, the unflanged edge of said lid being pivotly attached to the upper edge of said rear panel of said box; a cutting edge projecting outwardly from said box, said cutting edge generally positioned at the juncture of said bottom and said front panel, and said cutting edge lying in a plane generally coplanar with said bottom; said front panel extending upwardly to about one-half of the height of said box and smoothly folded inwardly and secured at an angle of at least 180.

2. A dispensing container in accordance with claim 1, wherein said flange extends downwardly for a distance of about one-half the height of said box.

3. A dispensing container in accordance with claim 1, having disposed therein a wound supply roll of a thin film.

4. A container in accordance with the container set forth in claim 3, wherein said film is a plastic film having a thickness less than about 0.75 mil.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

1. A DISPENSING CARTON CONSISTING ESSENTIALLY OF A HOLLOW, GENERALLY RECTANGULAR BOX HAVING A BOTTOM, TWO END PANELS, A FRONT PANEL, A REAR PANEL, A LID MEMBER, SAID LID MEMBER COMPRISING A GENERALLY RECTANGULAR PANEL, THREE OF THE SIDES OF SAID PANEL HAVING A DOWNWARDLY FACING FLANGE, SAID FLANGE BEING ADAPTED TO SLIDABLY ENCLOSE SAID ENDS AND A PORTION OF SAID FRONT OF SAID BOX, THE FLANGE ENCLOSING A PORTION OF THE FRONT OF THE BOX FOR A VERTICAL DISTANCE SUBSTANTIALLY LESS THAN ONE-HALF THE HEIGHT OF SAID FRONT PANEL, THE UNFLANGED EDGE OF SAID LID BEING PIVOTLY ATTACHED TO THE UPPER EDGE OF SAID REAR PANEL OF SAID BOX; A CUTTING EDGE PROJECTING OUTWARDLY FROM SAID BOX, SAID CUTTING EDGE GENERALLY POSITIONED AT THE JUNCTURE OF SAID BOTTOM AND SAID FRONT PANEL, AND SAID CUTTING EDGE LYING IN A PLANE GENERALLY COPLANAR WITH SAID BOTTOM; SAID FRONT PANEL EXTENDING UPWARDLY TO ABOUT ONE-HALF OF THE HEIGHT OF SAID BOX AND SMOOTHLY FOLDED INWARDLY AND SECURED AT AN ANGLE OF AT LEAST 180*. 